Low voltage devices and circuits for energy-starved systems

Energy-efficient computing is critical for the distributed wireless sensor nodes and computing hubs which will form the Internet of Things (IoT). To meet the power requirements of IoT systems it is required to scale the operating voltage aggressively into the subthreshold/near-threshold region. To combat the performance penalty and increased sensitivity to PVT variation of subthreshold operation computational systems must be optimized at the architectural, circuit, and device level. Subthreshold circuit design techniques, low-voltage transistors based on FDSOI, and high-density 3D integration form a synergistic ecosystem which will enable useful computational complexity within small, energy-starved systems.